Some of my work on cognition & learning in massively multiplayer
online games is also relevant here:
http://website.education.wisc.edu/steinkuehler/
>Gee's study of "projective identities" in video gaming is relevant
>to this discussion--one of his students (graduating soon), Rebecca
>Black, is also completing a dissertation that looks at identity
>construction through fanfiction sites. p
>At 05:18 PM 3/6/2006 -0500, you wrote:
>>As a technology instructor in an inner-city school district with over 90% of
>>the student population qualifying for Title I funds, I have been fascinated
>>while observing students utilizing online communities (myspace.com) as
>>environments to create "alternative" identities. Students that we would
>>often think of as "at-risk" in traditional education vernacular, take on new
>>identities in these environments and role play with fellow-cyber travelers
>>without the baggage usually associated with persons laden with generations
>>of poverty. While the street language pervades the dialogue, one would be
>>challenged to differentiate those participants from the various "social
>>classes". A new social reality with classless identities seems to be under
>>construction in this not so artificial virtual world.
>>
>>I think it well worth research to explore behavior in these environments. I
>>further think CHAT provides an exciting perspective from which to conduct
>>that exploration.
>>
>>Mark
>>----- Original Message -----
>>From: "Russell, Donna L" <russelldl@umkc.edu>
>>To: <xmca@weber.ucsd.edu>
>>Sent: Monday, March 06, 2006 4:10 PM
>>Subject: [xmca] virtual realities
>>
>>
>>hello linda
>>
>>i think that 'reality' virtual or otherwise deals with the authenticity of
>>your responses (as in how your responses are validated by consequences in
>>the context) i think virtual realities such as you describe will become more
>>involving as the quality of the human computer interface develops
>>
>>language has been our gauge and response to reality and children's
>>development is monitored by the development of language memes- with emerging
>>technologies technology memes are created to gauge development and resultant
>>authenticity to virtual realities. i believe in the future virtual realities
>>will include not a rough interface between the human and digitial
>>'reality' -- rather there will be a meme bot that contains your aspects of
>>your understandings and knowledge that will make the engagement more 'real'
>>and more authentic-
>>
>> in the future these virtual representations will interact as information
>>assistants, virtual coaches, virtual sales clerks, virtual entertainers, and
>>virtual instructors. i am part of the virtual instructors pilot research
>>group which is looking at research in the development of these virtual
>>humans- i am interested in the design of learning environments using these
>>virtual humans and the kinds and qualities of learning that are potentially
>>available in these 'realities'
>>
>>donna
>>
>>Donna L. Russell, Ph.D.
>>Assistant Professor
>>Instructional Technology
>>Curriculum and Instructional Leadership
>>Suite 309
>>School of Education
>>University of Missouri-Kansas City
>>Kansas City, MO 64110
>>(cell) 314.210.6996
>>(office) 816.235.5871
>>russelldl@umkc.edu
>>http://r.web.umkc.edu/russelldl/
>>----- Original Message -----
>>From: "Polin, Linda" <Linda.Polin@pepperdine.edu>
>>To: "eXtended Mind, Culture, Activity" <xmca@weber.ucsd.edu>
>>Sent: Monday, March 06, 2006 12:29 AM
>>Subject: Re: [xmca] Experience: material, ideal, real, imagined in MMOGs
>>
>>> Hi Mike and X'ers,
>>>
>>> I am both playing in and writing about an MMOG at the moment, with a
>>> group of doctoral students who are no doubt lurking on this list.
>>>
>>> I'm playing in World of Warcraft (or World of Warcrack, as it is
>>> often called for good reason). I am very interested in the way in
>>> which the designers have shaped interaction and play, with regard to
>>> both the client interface for playing, and the sociocultural
>>> structures around tasks and interactions in the game play. [I'm also
>> > playing in Second Life, but that is a very different creature.]
>>>
>>> In WoW, I've played alongside 12 year olds and old farts like myself;
>>> college kids complaining about the bandwidth in the dorms, and
>>> mommies who periodically have to go AFK BRB (away from keyboard; be
>>> right back) to change a diaper. So far none offers any evidence of
>>> confusing what you are calling reality and fantasy, although almost
>>> all have remarked on one occasion or another about the immersive
>>> power of the world to 'wow' them (pun intended) and engage them
>>> deeply. Everyone who plays has a story about losing track of time in
>>> significant ways. That is immersion. And I think Michelle's remarks
>>> with regard to "flow" come the closest to describing what is going on.
>>>
>>> Is it material? Because there is an economic system in play, and
>>> objects of desire, there is real work happening, and I am NOT
>>> referencing only the "gold farmers" in China using game characters to
>>> gather game gold to be sold for real money to players who want an
>>> easy way to get ahead in the game but lack the time or tenacity to do
>>> the grind work. There are also in-game activities analogous to real
>>> work and real world life.
>>>
>>> Real work: For instance, the guildmaster of my guild is a day trader
>>> who spends a lot of time working the Auction House (in-game EBay kind
>>> of thing) to make the game money he needs to support his character's
>>> needs (e.g., trick out his ride, in this case a white tiger). There
>>> are guilds that players belong to, which function as both family and
>>> school in a way reminiscent of the Brazilian "Samba schools" Seymour
>>> Papert described. Here though, instead of preparing for Mardi Gras
>>> competitions with other Samba Schools and having fun, it's about
>>> preparing for competitions with other players and having fun.
>>>
>>> Real play (within play): For instance, at the recent Winter Veil
>>> Festival I got to drink strong ale, and after two drinks, my screen
>>> was a bit blurry. After three drinks, it was significantly worse and
>>> my mouse actions were less accurate. I was drunk, albeit virtually
>>> so, and my game play was impaired.
>>>
>>> I would propose that, within the game world, these analogous elements
>>> make it a KIND of real world, rather than a fantasy world. There is a
>>> very real, game-specific culture that players rely upon to make their
>>> way in that world. There are real relationships, real traditions and
>>> ways of being in the world, real identity markers, divisions of labor
>>> and opportunities for collaboration, sub-cultures, mediational
>>> objects with embedded histories that support new learners, etc etc
>>> etc. WoW is fascinating to me because it is NOT a blurring of
>>> reality; it is an ALTERNATE (not alternative) reality, an alternate
>>> real culture. By virtue of having a discernible culture, is it not real?
>>>
>>> There is an immense amount of material to talk about here, but this
>>> is an interesting turn on XMCA and I'm hoping we'll have some 'time'
>>> to discuss more. I'd point you to our blog on this, but it's not yet
>>> ready for prime time consumption.
>>>
>>> Why must we refer to reality as if there were only one possible? =grin=
>>>
>>> Lindax
>>> (aka Hallgrima, a level 44 Gnome Warlock)
>>>
>>>
>>> Linda Polin, PhD
>>> Davidson Professor of Education and Technology
>>> Director, EdD in Educational Technology
>>> 310-568-5641; Skype: profpolin
>>> gsep.pepperdine.edu/~lpolin
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On Mar 5, 2006, at 4:07 PM, Mike Cole wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> In various situations (in particular, I am thinking of various
>>>>> massive
>>>>> multi-user games and related cyber-interactional meeting places)
>>>>> it appears that people can, perhaps cannot help at times,
>>>>> confusing what
>>>>> we
>>>>> would normally refer to as "fantasy" and "reality."
>>>>>
>>>>> There is an extensive literature on the development of this
>>>>> distinction in
>>>>> children's development, but I am seeking research on the
>>>>> distinction's presumed presence or absence among adults.
>>>>>
>>>>> Any and all help appreciated
>>>>> mike
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> xmca mailing list
>>>>> xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
>> >>> http://dss.ucsd.edu/mailman/listinfo/xmca
>>>>>
>>>>> Andy Blunden, for Victorian Peace Network
>>>>> Global Justice Tours: http://ethicalpolitics.org
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> xmca mailing list
>>>> xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
>>>> http://dss.ucsd.edu/mailman/listinfo/xmca
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> xmca mailing list
>>> xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
>>> http://dss.ucsd.edu/mailman/listinfo/xmca
>>
>>Donna L. Russell, Ph.D.
>>Assistant Professor
>>Instructional Technology
>>Curriculum and Instructional Leadership
>>School of Education
>>University of Missouri-Kansas City
>>(email) russelldl@umkc.edu <mailto:russelldl@umkc.edu>
>>(website) http://r.web.umkc.edu/russelldl/
>><http://r.web.umkc.edu/russelldl>
>>(cell) 314.210.6996
>>_______________________________________________
>>xmca mailing list
>>xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
>>http://dss.ucsd.edu/mailman/listinfo/xmca
>>
>>
>>_______________________________________________
>>xmca mailing list
>>xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
>>http://dss.ucsd.edu/mailman/listinfo/xmca
>
>
>_______________________________________________
>xmca mailing list
>xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
>http://dss.ucsd.edu/mailman/listinfo/xmca
-- Constance A. Steinkuehler Assistant Professor, Curriculum & Instruction University of Wisconsin - Madison http://www.constances.org _______________________________________________ xmca mailing list xmca@weber.ucsd.edu http://dss.ucsd.edu/mailman/listinfo/xmca
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Sat Apr 01 2006 - 01:00:12 PST